The present invention relates generally to cotton harvesters, and more specifically, to a cotton picker for harvesting narrow row cotton.
Spindle-type cotton harvesters typically include two to four row units spaced transversely across the front of a mobile frame with each row unit having two picker drums spaced on opposite sides of the row of cotton to be harvested. Such structure is shown, for example, in Hubbard et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,249,365. Each row unit is a relatively large and complex piece of machinery, and the configuration of the unit typically limits the minimum row spacing to approximately 36 inches. However, narrower row cotton has become increasingly popular, and harvesting cotton spaced in rows as narrow as 30 inches has usually required a skip-row method of harvesting such as shown in Bennett et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,277. Alternately, various types of nested row units have been proposed, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,538,403. Although the skip-row method has alleviated some of the problems of harvesting narrow row cotton, special shields are required to direct cotton around the harvester frame, and cotton damage and loss can result from the multiple trips over the rows. Nested arrangements are very difficult to access for cleaning and maintenance, and providing an adequate cotton conveying system from the nested units has been a continuing problem.